Mark Webber (Red Bull Racing) has proved peerless with a superb performance to win the Monaco Grand Prix with a super soft – medium Bridgestone Potenza tyre strategy on the streets of Monte Carlo.
Webber finished just ahead of team-mate Sebastian Vettel after the end of the fourth safety car period. Renault F1 Team driver Robert Kubica finished in third. The top three drivers were all on the same tyre strategy.
Hiroshi Yasukawa – Director of Bridgestone Motorsport, says
“Once more this wonderful, historic location of Monaco has provided Formula One with an excellent race and we are proud of the performance of our tyres which added to the spectacle today. Many spectators here and television viewers around the world were rewarded with a fantastic sporting event. We enjoy a good relationship with the people of Monaco and our signage has always been very prominent here. It shows the brand name of Bridgestone strongly on televisions and newspapers everywhere. Congratulations to Mark Webber and Red Bull for their consecutive win, and also to Renault who powered all three podium finishers.”
Hirohide Hamashima – Bridgestone Director of Motorsport Tyre Development, says
“Today I am proud to say that both compounds of Bridgestone Potenzas performed very well and a variety of strategies were possible. The medium compound was so strong. It provided good lap times right up to the end of the race, even when it had been used for 77 laps as in the case of Fernando Alonso, who achieved a good result after starting from the pit lane. The super soft compound also showed praiseworthy performance, even with the heavy fuel loads at the start of the race. We could see from the pace of Nico Rosberg before his pit stop that this tyre could have been used for longer stints than we generally saw. We always expect transverse graining on the rear tyres here, due to the traction demands of the circuit layout, but we were surprised at how well our tyres resisted this. The drivers should have got good satisfaction from our tyres today, and I am happy with this.”
Stats of the Day

Bridgestone Potenza Driver Tyre Strategies Rd.6 – Monaco Grand Prix
In 2010, the tyre regulations stipulate that the two dry tyre specifications must be visibly distinguishable from each other. At the Monaco Grand Prix, the super soft (option) compound Bridgestone Potenza tyres were marked with green bands on the sidewalls. The wet weather tyres were also marked with a green line in a central groove.

www.bridgestonemotorsport.com

Bridgestone Motorsport’s Saturday Update

Mark Webber (Red Bull Racing) has used Bridgestone’s super soft compound tyre to blast to his third pole position of 2010 with a new pole position record amidst the glamour of the tight and twisty streets of Monte Carlo for the Monaco Grand Prix.
Webber set a time of 1min 13.826secs and will be joined on the front row tomorrow by Renault F1 Team driver Robert Kubica, who was also fastest in the morning practice session, using the super soft compound for a 1min 14.806secs lap.
Q&A with Hirohide Hamashima – Bridgestone Director of Motorsport Tyre Development
What was significant about today’s running?
“Today was all about learning the track condition after a day of no Formula One Bridgestone rubber being laid on the surface yesterday. In the morning, track temperature was quite cool, so it took a little longer for both compounds to warm up to their ideal operating temperature. In qualifying, finding a clear track was very difficult. In practice and qualifying, once drivers got their tyres up to temperature they were rewarded with good performance from both compounds. Mark Webber was very fast, setting a new pole position record. Qualifying was so exciting today, particularly the last two minutes, and we are proud to support this excitement with our Bridgestone Potenza tyres.”

What are the tyre strategy considerations for tomorrow’s race?
“The top ten drivers will all start the race on the super soft Bridgestones, so it will be interesting to see when the first pit stops will be made. Track position before and after the pit stops will be very important as it is so difficult to overtake. The front runners will not want to be held up by their rivals or back markers so could pit to avoid this. They also will want to exit the pits in clear space too. The track temperature will be a strong factor too as it has generally been cooler than expected here. Maintaining the condition of the super soft tyres at the start of the race, as always, will be a crucial point, and the track condition improvement is likely to be very noticeable during the course of the race. It will also be interesting watching the tyre strategy and progress of Fernando Alonso, as he seems to have a fast car, but will not start from where we would usually expect him to do so, due to missing qualifying.”
Stats of the Day

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Mark Webber (Red Bull Racing) has scored his first win of the season after finishing first in the Spanish Grand Prix by 24 seconds from home hero, Fernando Alonso (Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro).
Webber led from start to finish using a soft-hard Bridgestone tyre strategy, the same as Alonso. Vettel made two pit stops, using a soft-hard-soft to finish third. Vodafone McLaren Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton set the race’s fastest lap, a 1min 24.357secs, using the hard tyre on lap 59.
Hiroshi Yasukawa – Director of Bridgestone Motorsport, says
“Congratulations to Mark Webber for his first win of the year to open the European season in front of a superb crowd here in Spain. For Fernando Alonso this was also a great day, to be on the podium in his first Spanish Grand Prix driving for Ferrari. From Bridgestone’s perspective this has been a very strong weekend. We hosted guests from the USA and Brazil as well as many from our European markets which has illustrated the importance of Formula One as a business tool. Our sales companies continue to support our Formula One activities, showing the significance of this to our business. We are proud to have the support of all of the teams in this fantastic sport and now look forward to heading straight to Monaco for what is likely to be another fabulous race meeting.”
Hirohide Hamashima – Bridgestone Director of Motorsport Tyre Development, says
“Today was an interesting race where pit stop timing was crucial. This was illustrated by both Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher gaining positions through their choices. Mark Webber’s performance was exceptional and Red Bull had a very good set-up with both compounds of tyre here. The hard and the soft compounds worked well today and the track condition continued to improve as there was no rain last night, unlike on Friday night. The hard compound was very consistent once it was warmed up and was used for the race’s fastest lap, on low fuel loads near the end of the race. The soft compound gave a good lap time straight away and was capable of longer first stints than we generally saw today. We are working closely with McLaren to understand what happened to Lewis Hamilton, but initial impressions are that this was not caused by a tyre issue.”
Stats of the Day

Bridgestone Potenza Driver Tyre Strategies Rd.5 – Spanish Grand Prix
In 2010, the tyre regulations stipulate that the two dry tyre specifications must be visibly distinguishable from each other. At the Spanish Grand Prix, the soft (option) compound Bridgestone Potenza tyres were
marked with green bands on the sidewalls. The wet weather tyres were also marked with a green line in a central groove.

www.bridgestonemotorsport.com

Reigning Formula One world champion Jenson Button (Vodafone McLaren Mercedes) used Bridgestone’s soft compound and intermediate tyres to win a thrilling Chinese Grand Prix in mixed weather conditions at Shanghai International Circuit.
Button led his team-mate Lewis Hamilton across the line by 1.5 seconds. He started on the soft dry compound, before using two sets of intermediates to take him to the chequered flag. Hamilton made four stops, using a soft-intermediate-hard-intermediate-intermediate tyre strategy. Mercedes GP Petronas F1 Team driver Nico Rosberg finished third.
Hiroshi Yasukawa – Director of Bridgestone Motorsport, says
“Congratulations to Jenson Button for his second win this season and Vodafone McLaren Mercedes for their 1-2. This race was very well supported by Bridgestone China who had many guests present. We were all rewarded with a fantastic battle on track which was enjoyed by all of our guests. Today highlighted the qualities of our dry and intermediate tyres. We are pleased to support such an exciting race.”
Hirohide Hamashima – Bridgestone Director of Motorsport Tyre Development, says
“Today was a fascinating and thrilling race. Fascinating, because conditions were right on the crossover between the dry and intermediate tyre for so many laps, and thrilling for the action this caused on track. Jenson Button drove very intelligently to take his second win of the season by remaining on the soft tyre when many changed to intermediates, and making good use of his track position from there. There were many different approaches today. The soft compound worked very well in the damp conditions and we are happy with the performance of the intermediate. Both tyres required careful management and Formula One was gifted with a superb spectacle in Shanghai. Now the next challenge for many of our staff is finding a way back to Europe.”
Stats of the Day

Tyres used: Medium (prime) / Super soft (option)

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Bridgestone Potenza Driver Tyre Strategies Rd.4 – China Grand Prix
In 2010, the tyre regulations stipulate that the two dry tyre specifications must be visibly distinguishable from each other. At the Chinese Grand Prix, the soft (option) compound Bridgestone Potenza tyres were marked with green bands on the sidewalls. The wet weather tyres were also marked with a green line in a central groove.

* Teams may not necessarily change tyres at pitstops
** Includes drive-through/stop-go penalties

www.bridgestonemotorsport.com

Sebastian Vettel led his Red Bull Racing team-mate Mark Webber across the line to win a scintillating Malaysian Grand Prix with a soft – hard Bridgestone Potenza tyre strategy at a searing hot Sepang.
The rain which visited the circuit for every afternoon in the build-up to the race remained absent, meaning it was tyre strategies using Bridgestone’s two dry tyres which defined performance, with a good mix of timing and order of use of the hard and soft compounds.
Hiroshi Yasukawa – Director of Bridgestone Motorsport, says
“Today we saw a very exiting race and I am proud of the part that Bridgestone played in this with a good allocation of tyres, as confirmed by the race winner, Sebastian Vettel. Congratulations to Red Bull for their one-two today, and to Mercedes for Nico Rosberg’s third place. It is always a pleasure to visit Malaysia and we have many supporters here. Bridgestone Malaysia celebrated its tenth anniversary around the Grand Prix weekend and they raised over 105,000 Ringgets for their nominated charity – the Global Environment Centre.”
Hirohide Hamashima – Bridgestone Director of Motorsport Tyre Development, says
“This was a good and interesting race based around tyre strategies. The hard and soft Bridgestone compounds performed very well, but with distinct characteristics. Those who started with the soft tyre had to stop sooner than those who started with the hard, as the soft had a shorter wear life. The hard allowed drivers to continue pushing, as shown by Mark Webber setting the race’s fastest lap on lap 53 with this tyre. The soft required a more forgiving style to maintain its performance. Drivers were able to use fresh tyres sets in the race, as they did not use these tyres in the wet qualifying yesterday. This meant we saw many fastest race laps as the race progressed, from drivers taking to the track on fresh rubber. Our compounds were able to support a variety of strategies and it was good to see the racing on track between many drivers at different times through the race. Even though the top three drivers used the same strategy, there were strong moves through the field using a hard-soft strategy. So many people predicted rain for this race, but today we did not need wet weather to provide excitement on track.”

Stats of the Day

Bridgestone Potenza Driver Tyre Strategies Rd.3 – Malaysia Grand Prix
In 2010, the tyre regulations stipulate that the two dry tyre specifications must be visibly distinguishable from each other. At the Malaysia Grand Prix, the soft (option) compound Bridgestone Potenza tyres were marked with green bands on the sidewalls. The wet weather tyres were also marked with a green line in a central groove. Team Race Driver Result Tyre Choice by Stint*:

* Teams may not necessarily change tyres at pitstops
** Includes drive-through/stop-go penalties

www.bridgestonemotorsport.com

Mark Webber (Red Bull Racing) used Bridgestone’s Intermediate tyre to blast to pole position by a massive 1.3 seconds at a treacherous and wet Sepang circuit for the Malaysian Grand Prix.
Webber set a time of 1min 49.327secs for his second-ever pole and first of 2010. He will start tomorrow’s race alongside Mercedes GP Petronas F1 Team driver Nico Rosberg, who used Bridgestone’s Wet tyre to go second fastest. Webber was also fastest in the earlier practice session, using the soft compound for a 1min 33.542secs in dry conditions.
Q&A with Hirohide Hamashima – Bridgestone Director of Motorsport Tyre Development
What was significant about today’s running?
“The weather and timing of when to go out on track were both very important today in qualifying, and this is best illustrated by the grid we will see for tomorrow’s race. The weather was very variable and it was difficult to make the correct decision for when to go out on track and which tyre to use. Mark Webber made a very good call for his pole position. Both the Intermediate and wet tyre worked well in the conditions today and the cross-over between the two was around where we expected. If we have weather like this tomorrow, being on the correct tyre for the conditions will make all the difference.”
What are the tyre strategy considerations for tomorrow’s race?

“As qualifying was held in wet conditions all drivers are free to choose which tyre they will use to start the race. We have gained good data of both dry tyres and the soft is quicker and will work best when the cars are lighter. This means we would expect many to start on the hard tyre if the race starts in dry conditions. If it is wet at the start, then it is very difficult to say, as it depends how wet the track becomes, and if there is any standing water. No matter what the conditions I think we will have a very exciting race with the grid line-up on this challenging Sepang circuit.”
Stats of the Day

Compounds used: Hard / Soft / Intermediate / Wet

www.bridgestonemotorsport.com

Vodafone McLaren Mercedes driver Jenson Button scored a fine victory in the Australian Grand Prix with a superb illustration of his tyre management skills by using one set of Bridgestone’s soft compound tyre for all but the first six laps of the 58 lap race. Button started, like the rest of the field, on Bridgestone’s Intermediate tyre after rain fell on Albert Park. The reigning champion was first to pit for a set of the soft dry compound Bridgestone Potenzas, and then drove all the way to the chequered flag on these tyres to score his first race victory of 2010. Renault F1 team driver Robert Kubica used the same strategy to gain his first podium for his new team whilst Felipe Massa took third place for Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro, also on the same strategy. Pole-man Sebastian Vettel was unfortunate to exit the race from the lead in his Red Bull, whilst his team-mate Mark Webber set the race’s fastest lap on lap 47 using the soft compound. Hiroshi Yasukawa – Director of Bridgestone Motorsport, says “What an entertaining race and superb showcase for our Bridgestone tyre technology. Congratulations to Jenson Button for his first win for Vodafone McLaren Mercedes, and well done to Robert Kubica for his strong second place for the Renault F1 Team. Albert Park provided an excellent race environment and we are happy to have seen exciting racing for the fans here and around the world.” Hirohide Hamashima – Bridgestone Director of Motorsport Tyre Development, says “This was a great day for tyre performance, strategy and racing as we saw interesting action on track and a good illustration of the benefits of tyre management. The soft tyre was the preferred race tyre once the track dried, and this is a reflection of the track and weather conditions suiting the lower temperature working range tyre. Jenson Button did a superb job to look after his soft tyres for 52 laps for an impressive victory. Robert Kubica also completed a long stint showing good tyre management for second place. There was an interesting battle between the one stop strategies of the Ferraris and the two stop strategy of Lewis Hamilton. We are happy with the performance of our intermediate tyres which were used to start the race, with these heavy cars, and then performed well as the track dried. Careful tyre management meant the soft could last for so long in today’s conditions and this provided a showcase of driver tyre management skills. The degradation of the soft was less than we would have seen on a fully dry track, and the lap times were quite slow because of this. The hard compound, as used by Rubens Barrichello, also delivered a good performance so we are happy.”

www.bridgestonemotorsport.com

Fernando Alonso (Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro) won the opening round of the 2010 FIA Formula One World Championship season in emphatic fashion after using a super soft – medium Bridgestone Potenza tyre strategy at the new longer configuration Sakhir circuit for the Bahrain Grand Prix. Alonso led team-mate Felipe Massa across the line for a Ferrari 1-2, with Vodafone McLaren Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton taking third. The top three drivers were all on the same tyre strategy. Hiroshi Yasukawa – Director of Bridgestone Motorsport, says “What a great way to start Bridgestone’s fourteenth season of Formula One racing, with great battles right to the chequered flag at the new layout of Sakhir circuit in Bahrain. Congratulations to Fernando Alonso for his win and Ferrari for their 1-2 today. Well done also to Lotus for running so well in their first race. The new regulations have given all teams a good challenge and provided all of the viewers around the world a very exciting first race of the season.” Hirohide Hamashima – Bridgestone Director of Motorsport Tyre Development, says “Today we were very happy with tyre performance. This was the first race under these new regulations so no-one knew exactly what to expect. Sebastian Vettel did a great job to manage his super softs at the beginning of the race, making the same set he used for qualifying last the longest of all the front runners. Fernando Alonso drove a very intelligent race for his win, and he was able to set the fastest lap near the end, showing he had managed his tyres very well. It was great to see Felipe Massa back on the podium. Tyre management, as expected, was very important in this first race with no refuelling. The cars and drivers which were more forgiving to their tyres were rewarded with more durable performance. This was only the first of 19 races this season. I think we all have a lot to learn about this season’s best tyre strategies and it will be fascinating unlocking the secrets for the best performance in the races ahead.”

www.bridgestonemotorsport.com

Motor sport’s finest up and coming drivers sampled Bridgestone’s Potenza Formula One tyres in the final group test of 2009 at the Jerez racing circuit in southern Spain on December 1-3. All four compounds of 2009 specification dry tyres were available and used at the test. Twenty drivers drove 2602 laps over the course of the three days for the nine attending teams. Bridgestone’s intermediate and wet tyres were also used. Bridgestone’s Potenza Formula One tyres are next scheduled to be used at a group test at the beginning of February next year at Valencia, Spain where the 2010 specification tyres will be in use. Q&A with Jun Matsuzaki – Chief Engineer, Bridgestone Motorsport: What was learnt from this test? “This was an interesting test as we had many different drivers, most of whom had little or no experience of Formula One cars. The teams all had different programmes, and all four 2009 dry compounds were available to them. There was a lot of running with heavy cars to simulate the heavier fuel loads of next season so we gained useful data from this.”   How was the feedback from the young drivers? “It was good to see so many young drivers here at the same test, and there were more experienced F1 test drivers in action too, so we had a good benchmark. We could see some of these names again in the future and our current F1 drivers will always need to keep looking over their shoulders because of these youngsters.” What will be the changes to the tyres for the next test? “Our 2010 tyres are designed for the requirements of the heavier fuel loads in next year’s cars and also for the potential different pit stop strategies we could see without refuelling. The construction is more durable, and the compounds have also been modified. A narrower front tyre will also be introduced to adjust the basic balance of the cars. As tyre characteristics will be changed due to the modifications, we are now working very hard with all teams to enhance their understanding of this. We are very looking forward to seeing how quickly the teams maximise tyre performance within the new regulations of 2010.”

www.bridgestonemotorsport.com

Podium finish for Jenson in Abu Dhabi

Jenson finished his World Championship year on a high with a third-placed podium finish at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Sunday. Rubens came through a first corner impact to drive a composed race to fourth place.
Jenson said: "It was a fun race today and to be on the podium for the last race of the year is fantastic. The last few laps were really exciting and I was giving everything to take second place from Mark. I couldn’t quite make the moves stick and he’s a very difficult guy to overtake but it was a good clean fight and we were really on the edge. I would like to say a huge thank you to everyone at the team in Brackley and at Mercedes-Benz High Performance Engines. It really has been a fantastic year and they should all be very proud of what we have achieved together. It’s nice to end the year on a high after what has been a very competitive and challenging season."
Rubens was also happy with his race: "The start was quite exciting but unfortunately I collided slightly with Mark and he took a chunk of my front wing with him. It lost me a lot of downforce initially which let Jenson past but I was able to live with the understeer so we decided not to change the nose and I just pushed as hard as possible. It was a competitive race throughout and a lot of fun so I have to be pleased with fourth position . It’s truly been a great season and I have to thank the team for giving me a car that has been so competitive this year and the opportunity to return to winning ways again. We’ve had a great year together."
To read all of the race news from Abu Dhabi click here.

Ant’s Abu Dhabi Blog

On the ground at the Yas Marina Circuit for us was Anthony Davidson who switched from his BBC Radio Live 5 microphone to his Brawn GP laptop to take you behind the scenes of the new addition to the Formula One calendar. Check the Features section to read Ant’s blog!

The adventures continue for Achim and Biberle!

Achim Hofstädter is Rubens‘ physio and has been with the team for many years. He travels to every race with his camera and most importantly with his racing driver model car ‚Biberle‘ and uses his presence to record iconic scenes from every track on the Formula One calendar. This week, Achim and Biberle take us to Barcelona, Bahrain and Singapore! To check out Achim’s new photos, take a look at the Features section of the website from today.

Last chance to win a Brawn GP 1/12th scale nose cone!

Our latest competition will give one lucky fan the opportunity to win a 1/12th scale Brawn GP nose cone kindly provided by Amalgam. This incredibly detailed replica, available in limited edition, is a must-have item for any collector and fans of the team. But you need to be quick as the competition is ending very soon! For your chance to win, just visit the website from today and correctly answer three questions related to Brawn GP. Good luck!

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Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull Racing) won the final round of the 2009 FIA Formula One World Championship season in emphatic fashion after using a medium-medium-soft Bridgestone Potenza tyre strategy in a thrilling first-ever Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at Yas Marina.

Vettel led team-mate Mark Webber across the line, with newly crowned champion Jenson Button battling Webber hard and taking third. All podium finishers used the same tyre strategy.
Hiroshi Yasukawa – Director of Bridgestone Motorsport, says
“What a way to end a thrilling season of Formula One racing, with a great battle right to the chequered flag at this fabulous new circuit. Congratulations to Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull Racing for their win today. It has been a pleasure to be part of this exciting season, with so many changes and the return of slick tyres. We must say a big thank you to all of the teams who make this such a
great sport which so many people enjoy around the world. Also thank you to all our staff, who work so hard throughout the year. This was Bridgestone’s 13th year in Formula One and we saw the 150th GP race win on our tyres. We now look forward to 2010 full of expectation for another exciting and dramatic year.”
Hirohide Hamashima – Bridgestone Director of Motorsport Tyre Development, says
“Today the track continued to improve so we saw lap times improve all through the race. The medium showed very good performance and the soft was very durable, as seen by those making only one pitstop. Overall we are happy with today’s performance. The Yas Marina Circuit is a fantastic new track and we have learnt a lot on our first visit. This has been a great year and everyone has adapted very well to the many changes including slick tyres and no in-season testing. We now look to our preparations for 2010, with no refuelling and narrower front tyres.”
Stats of the Day

Continued…
Bridgestone Potenza Driver Tyre Strategies Rd.17 – Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

In 2009, the tyre regulations stipulate that the two dry tyre specifications must be visibly distinguishable from each other. At the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the soft compound Bridgestone Potenza tyres were marked with green bands on the sidewalls. The wet weather tyre was also marked with a green line in a groove.

www.bridgestonemotorsport.com

World Championship Double in Brazil!

A fantastic weekend at the Brazilian Grand Prix saw Brawn GP secure the 2009 FIA Formula One Constructors‘ Championship with Jenson driving a superb race from 14th position to wrap up the Drivers‘ Championship with one race remaining.
Team-mate Rubens started his home race from pole after an excellent performance in Saturday’s rain-delayed qualifying session but finished in eighth position after a late puncture forced an unscheduled trip to the pits and dropped him back.
After the race, Jenson declared: "That was the best race that I’ve driven in my career and I’m really going to enjoy this moment. For the team to win the Constructors‘ and the Drivers Championships is just fantastic and they deserve it so very much after all the difficult times that we all went through over the winter. To everyone back at the factory in Brackley and at Mercedes-Benz, thank you for all of your hard work and for producing such a fantastic car and engine. It’s going to take a while to sink in but for now I’m just reveling in the achievement of a lifelong dream."
Whilst disappointed with the race result, Rubens played a major part in securing the Constructors‘ title for the team and said: "We really have a great car and a great team and it has truly been an amazing year. I’m truly pleased for Jenson as a friend and he is a great champion. We have a fantastic relationship working together and that has really shown through this year. It was a true fight and I fought really hard but he really won it in the first half of the season. The team have been superb this year and they thoroughly deserve to win both the Constructors‘ and Drivers‘ Championships today."
Ross summed up the team’s achievements in Brazil saying: "What a day! I am so incredibly proud of the team and our drivers. Jenson is a fantastic racer, he knew what he had to do and did just that and is a very deserving World Champion. Rubens has made a fantastic contribution to this season without which we could not have won the Constructors‘ Championship today. The spirit in which our two drivers have fought for the Championship makes me very proud. The work and the commitment that the team showed over the winter and throughout this season really has been sensational."

Pete’s Brazilian Blog

To relive the team’s amazing Brazilian Grand Prix weekend from inside Jenson’s side of the garage, don’t forget to check out the Race Blog in the Features section to read the story of the weekend from Pete Bonnington, Jenson’s Assistant Race Engineer.

Commemorative Merchandise Range now available!

Brawn GP and Henri Lloyd have created a very special ‚Word Champions Collection‘ to celebrate the achievements of the team this season. Follow this link to be one of the first to order from the commemorative collection!

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